Chapter 3
Noticing Lin Ran’s shock, even A-Jie, who was beside him, leaned in for a curious peek at the screen.
“Whoa, where did this little black fluffball come from, Lin-zai?”
“Cough, it’s a little game I’m playing.” Lin Ran felt a little embarrassed about his game being seen.
Fortunately, A-Jie didn’t linger, just made a comment and then focused on making calls, rallying his friends to help move the peaches the next morning.
Lin Ran, disregarding the risk of upsetting the cub and causing a mission failure, quickly manipulated the game interface to lift the overturned fruit shell.
As expected, the game prompt confirmed that the milk inside was leftover from previous days and had spoiled.
Lin Ran felt a pang of sympathy. He noticed that even after he removed the shell, the little creature remained huddled and motionless, its wariness skyrocketing.
[Wariness +10][Wariness +10]…
[Warning: Cub’s wariness has reached a dangerous level and is about to undergo a transformation. Player, please take note!]
Before the wariness reached its peak, Lin Ran, without hesitation, selected the only unlocked interaction: “Lift.” Ignoring the sour milk staining the fluff, he lifted the little creature.
Only then did he notice that large, round eyes were silently shedding tears. Did it think it was being taken away?
Lin Ran’s heart melted at the sight. This game was too realistic.
“Don’t cry, okay? Did you hit your head when you fell?”
“If only I could hug and comfort you…” Unfortunately, his affection level wasn’t high enough yet.
To his relief, after lifting the cub, its wariness stopped rising, for some unknown reason. Moreover, due to the incident, a new option appeared: “Bathe.”
Lin Ran didn’t hesitate. “Will you be afraid of the water if I bathe you?” he softly asked the little creature, which still refused to look up. After waiting a few seconds and confirming it wasn’t struggling, he carefully carried it towards the in-game stream.
Since it didn’t refuse, it meant it agreed, right?
Initially worried about triggering a stress reaction like bathing a cat, he was surprised by the cub’s continued quietness in the water. Then, he discovered that the little creature’s condition was worse than he thought. Not only was it covered in fleas, but its left wing was also severely damaged, a heartbreaking sight.
Where did this game’s Encounter Card draw its cubs from? Were they born with these injuries? Lin Ran frowned, pondering. This looked like something that would happen to a creature abandoned in the wild.
Currently, there was no way to learn more. This game was becoming increasingly mysterious.
Having saved some coins, Lin Ran exchanged them for a set of bathing supplies.
[Exchanged for a set of bathing and grooming supplies]
Applying peach-scented cub shampoo, he meticulously cleaned the little creature, gently rubbing the lather and rinsing it with the flowing stream water. The cub, soaked, looked a bit pathetic, its fluffy body appearing thinner, making Lin Ran feel both pity and affection. It was definitely just baby fat; he’d need to feed it more.
He then switched the hairdryer to a gentle setting and aimed it at the cub, patiently combing through its fur with his fingers. At first, he could hear weak “Cheeps,” but after a few minutes, the sounds ceased entirely. It was unbelievably well-behaved.
Uh… No sound at all?
Lin Ran, engrossed in drying its fur, suddenly realized the cub had gone completely silent. He quickly turned off the hairdryer and checked. He had been so focused on how well-behaved it was that he hadn’t considered if something was wrong.
To his relief, nothing untoward had happened. Exhausted from crying and soothed by the warm air, the cub had fallen asleep in his hands.
Lin Ran gazed at the sleeping creature for a long moment, then gently reached out and touched its head. So soft and well-behaved.
Wait, he could feel it? As the soft sensation registered on his fingertips, Lin Ran realized a significant issue. How could a mobile game provide tactile feedback? Was it an illusion?
[Congratulations, player! You have successfully gained the cub’s initial trust and unlocked the Cub Basic Information Card! Current affection level: 10]
[Reward: Tactile Sensation. From now on, you can feel the cubs!]
[Bonus Reward: Beginner Moon Goddess Halo x24H!]
A series of system messages popped up. The first one, about the wariness dropping to zero, was understandable. Checking the background logs, he found that while bathing and cleaning the cub, its wariness had gradually disappeared. In a state of complete trust and utter exhaustion, the cub had fallen asleep.
But what was this Tactile Sensation? Could a mobile game possess such advanced technology?
Lin Ran frowned, examining his fingertips, certain that the sensation wasn’t an illusion. He could actually feel the cub’s fur through the screen. As for the Moon Goddess Halo, he had no clue what it was. He could only see a new hourglass icon in the top left corner of the game screen, displaying a classical, elegant red crescent moon and a chibi silhouette of the cub.
This game was truly bizarre.
After studying the “Moon Goddess Halo” for a while without any results, Lin Ran’s gaze fell on the newly illuminated scroll icon at the bottom of the screen: the Compendium.
Clicking it, he was prompted to name the little creature.
[Please name the cub!]
Lin Ran looked at the black fluffball and, after a few seconds, typed in “Little Sootball.”
“It really does look like a little ball of soot.” When it cried, it was a sootball shedding pearly tears.
After naming it, the Cub Compendium opened.
[Name: Little Sootball (named by Caretaker)]
[Species: Bat (Cub Stage)]
It was a bat?! It looked nothing like real-world bats, just a black fluffball with two small wings.
[Awakened Talent: None]
No talent wasn’t a big deal; he hadn’t expected to draw an SSR on his first try.
[Affection Level: 10/100 (Max level unlocks unusual phenomena)]
The message about unlocking unusual phenomena at max affection piqued his curiosity. Based on his experience so far, the game’s unlocked features always brought unexpected surprises or shocks. He wondered what this unusual phenomenon would be.
However, as he read the last line, his eyes stopped at the “Monster Notes” section:
[Monster Notes: When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. When the red eyes open, it heralds the catastrophic prelude to an eternal night.]
That sounded… ominous. Perhaps the abyss referred to Sootball’s pitch-black appearance? Hiding in the shadows, it did blend into the darkness.
But calling it a monster? That was an exaggeration. What kind of pitch-black abyss would “Cheep” at you?
“Who could call such a cute little creature a monster?” Lin Ran couldn’t help but lift the little guy again, utterly satisfied. Even if it was from the lowest level Encounter Card, it couldn’t be classified as a monster!
[Sootball’s affection +5]
Just as he protested, a game notification popped up, and the affection level jumped from 10 to 15.
Lin Ran: ?
Looking at the notification and then at the sleeping Sootball, whose little wings twitched slightly, he had a sudden realization. Could it be awake and pretending to sleep? And most likely eavesdropping on him?
O.O
That would explain why its wariness had stopped rising after he lifted and comforted it earlier.
Thinking of this, Lin Ran looked down at the cub, pretending to sleep but secretly perking up its ears. Even while feigning sleep, it somehow looked even cuter. Was it shy? Since its fur was black, it was impossible to tell.
Lin Ran finally placed the little creature in a small brown wicker basket beside his bed, along with the bowl of milk, so it could drink when it woke up.
Speaking of which, while bathing Sootball, he had noticed its left wing seemed shorter than the right. He was about to part the fur for a closer look. If there was a problem, early intervention was better.
However, a new message immediately popped up: [Insufficient affection level. Forcibly touching the cub’s sensitive areas may lead to extremely dangerous consequences!]
Seeing the stern warning, Lin Ran immediately stopped. The “sleeping” creature shifted slightly, carefully hiding its wing under its fur, turning its back to him, as if unwilling to let him see its imperfection. Lin Ran watched for a while before retracting his hand. The tense cub gradually relaxed.
“Cheep…!”
Then, Lin Ran’s hand moved in a different direction, gently stroking the cub’s fluffy head. This was a new interaction unlocked at affection level 15: Head Pats.
The cub, startled by the head pats, froze for a second. But as Lin Ran continued his gentle, non-threatening touch, it slowly relaxed, only its little tail nervously gripping the basket, betraying its emotions.
“Don’t worry. When you’re ready to show me your wings, I’ll take a closer look,” Lin Ran softly reassured Sootball, who was still diligently pretending to sleep. His intuition told him that day wouldn’t be far off.
“Lin-zai, Lin-zai, come here—!” Just then, Jiang Jie, having finished his calls, enthusiastically called out from the courtyard.
As Lin Ran got up to find Jiang Jie, the screen of his phone, which he had chosen to turn off, suddenly froze. A series of animated messages popped up.
[Congratulations! Initial affection level has reached 30! Officially unlocked the title “Beginner Caretaker”]
[Title reward: “Beginner Time Mirror” x1: A mirror that can foresee the future, rumored to have been the vanity mirror of the witch Lilith.]
[Important Update Notice: Core characters have logged in. Game 1.0 closed beta has ended. Updating to 2.0 globally. “Beginner Moon Goddess Halo” x24H will be active during the mandatory logout period—!]
